With fear still in their legs, the passengers at Eindhoven Airport left the plane that had left Marrakesh around one o’clock on Sunday night. All occupants had witnessed the severe earthquake on Friday evening. “I felt the fear from very close, it was scary to walk around there,” said a returned passenger. More than two thousand fatalities have been counted so far.
In the arrivals hall, travelers are met by family members and friends. Abedella from Eindhoven is one of the first passengers to get off the plane. “It was intense. It was mainly the poorest neighborhoods that were affected. “We were just on our way to a large supermarket in Marrakesh by car when we saw a horse exhibiting strange behavior. When we got out we noticed that it was an earthquake. went.”
“They already have so little and then this happens.”
The Eindhoven resident is religious. “I thought: this is a warning from God. Everyone was running. Everyone was on the street and many people slept outside. I couldn’t sleep and sat in my car. I’m glad I’m home.”
A little further on, Marco and daughter Lotte are embraced by a family member. Marco and Lotte were on holiday and in a hotel. “We went to bed around eleven o’clock. We took off our lenses and glasses. Then suddenly something started to rattle. We immediately went outside. There were people screaming and looking for a safe place,” says Lotte.
According to Marco it was a big chaos. “Our hotel was full of cracks. I lay in the lobby, which was still a safe place. I didn’t sleep. I was afraid of aftershocks. You go outside, just like everyone else. You look for each other and seek support. I especially feel sorry for the poor people and families from the medina. They already have so little and then this happens.
“Suddenly the floor started shaking. We thought it was part of the show.”
Mieke sighs deeply. “I’m glad that we are finally almost home. We have had significant delays,” says the resident of As in Belgian Limburg. “The earthquake took us by surprise. We were eating in an open-air restaurant and in the meantime there was a show going on. One of the performers announced through a microphone that ‘the magic was about to begin’. Then the floor started shaking. We thought it was heard the show. Suddenly the locals started running away from the restaurant. Then we realized it was a powerful earthquake and they ran outside.”
Mieke’s hotel was still relatively intact. “There were some cracks in the walls, but we could sleep in our room. Half the hotel was sleeping outside. The pool and the terrace were full. I thought it was a nasty sight. The restaurant was a “Great devastation. Everything made of glass was broken. The staff scooped the glass off the floor.”
“It goes so fast. You almost don’t realize it”
“Luckily, we’re still here,” Nadine says with relief. “There was not much damage where we stayed. We were seventy kilometers from the epicenter. In the mountain villages it was chaos. A guide said that there were many victims and that entire families had been torn away. In our hotel it was a major disaster. devastation. We slept outside by the pool. We were really scared. It goes so fast. You almost don’t realize it.”
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